


parallel break

by topazios



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Domestic, M/M, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-05
Updated: 2015-07-05
Packaged: 2018-04-07 17:37:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4272084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/topazios/pseuds/topazios
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hoseok proposes to Kihyun. That’s it, that’s the fic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	parallel break

**Author's Note:**

> friend: why am i thinking about proposal au  
> me: omg  
> me: (one week later) i wrote the proposal au and it is almost 7000 words. how is that possible. all he is doing is propose, how is that almost 7000 words.

“So,” Hoseok says. “I was thinking of making him a fancy dinner, candles and everything, like candles everywhere, and then after dessert I’ll pretend to go to the bathroom and actually take that time to get the ring and then sneak up behind him, get down on one knee, and propose.” 

“There are too many steps in that,” Minhyuk says immediately, not looking up from his phone. “You’re going to fuck it up.” 

“Excuse me,” Hoseok says, feeling personally offended. “I have yet to fuck up a single line of code in all of my years of coding. I graduated for my coding. I have a job for my coding.” 

“Yeah, thank god you have a job, or you’d be all over the place trying to find a night job,” Minhyuk says, using his free hand to pick up a fork and drag it through the jam on his toast. 

“I could so handle a night job!”

“Hoseok, you go to bed at ten thirty on the dot on weekdays.” 

“Who said that night jobs have to be during the weekdays?” 

“Oh my god, just move on. What else were you thinking?” Minhyuk finally puts down his phone and starts using both his fork and knife to mutilate his toast. There’s jam literally everywhere. 

“I don’t see anything wrong with the fancy dinner,” Hoseok protests, almost spilling his coffee all over the table. His head still hurts from last night. He doesn’t know how Minhyuk is alive after all the alcohol he consumed. 

“Um, can you even cook? No, you can’t. I’ve seen you trying to boil pasta, and it was a disaster.” 

“I don’t know what to do,” Hoseok wails, planting his face into the table. “How are you supposed to propose?” 

“Stop stressing out,” Minhyuk says, cutting up the rest of his hard boiled egg into tiny little pieces. “You’re going to get all wrinkly and then Kihyun won’t love you anymore.”

“Kihyun will love me forever,” Hoseok mumbles, his face still smushed up against the table. “Or at least he would if I figure out how to propose.” 

“Why don’t you just wait and see if he proposes? Problem solved.”

“No, I have to beat him to the proposal,” Hoseok says, lifting his face and making sure that everything is still in place. “It’s the rule.” 

“What rule?”

“It’s just the rule,” Hoseok says. “Okay but what if I propose and he says, no, I think we’re moving too fast, or something like that?” 

“You guys have been living together for like, two years,” Minhyuk says. “You guys have met each others’ families and friends, gone to weddings together, including Hyunwoo’s wedding, can you _believe_ he managed to get married, gone on vacation together, gone home decor shopping, car shopping, not to mention that you have a pet together.” 

“We have a bunny, that barely counts.” 

Minhyuk seems to take this personally, like he’s the high protector of bunnies or something equally ridiculous. Hoseok should have known better than to befriend an Animal Science major. “Excuse me, every pet deserves responsible owners who will give it the utmost care and love. Having a pet is a privilege that should not be taken lightly. If for some reason you do not hold up to these standards, I can arrange for the pet to be —”

“Shut up, shut up, you know I love that dumb bunny,” Hoseok groans, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles. “I’m gonna go home now, Kihyun should be waking up soon.” 

“Why are we even awake?” Minhyuk asks, like he’s just realizing this. “It’s not even eight.” 

“Well, you know that alcohol disrupts my sleep cycle, and I don’t know why you opened the door when I knocked at six in the morning.” Hoseok tries to find his jacket that he threw on Minhyuk and Hyungwon’s couch and succeeds in banging his shin on the coffee table. 

“Please leave and never come back,” Minhyuk says, opening the front door and fixing Hoseok with a glare. Hoseok is almost at the stairs when Minhyuk calls, “Hoseok? Don’t worry about proposing too much. Just be honest during it and everything’s going to be fine.” 

 

#

 

Kihyun is awake and has already showered when Hoseok opens their front door, a towel around his shoulders, catching the droplets of water falling from his hair. 

“Good morning,” Hoseok says, as Kihyun pours two cups of coffee. “Why are you up so early?” 

Kihyun shrugs, stirring cream into his coffee. Hoseok hates cream in his coffee; he only takes sugar. “I figured you’d be hungover, so I was going to make you food, but you actually got up before me.” 

“I went to Minhyuk and Hyungwon’s,” Hoseok says, “to make sure they got back okay last night.” When Kihyun hands him his coffee, he puts it back down on the countertop, putting his arms around Kihyun instead. 

“Hyungwon’s hangover is going to last for nine days,” Kihyun predicts, as Hoseok rests his cheek against Kihyun’s damp hair. “Minhyuk is probably going to move in with us because he can’t stand being quiet.” 

“It’ll be like college all over again,” Hoseok says cheerfully, as Kihyun tries to wiggle out of Hoseok’s arms. 

“The eggs are going to burn,” Kihyun warns, and Hoseok loosens his grip so Kihyun can at least turn around. “Also my mom is going to call soon so I won’t be able to eat breakfast with you.” 

“That’s okay, tell her I said hi,” Hoseok says, resting his head against the back of Kihyun’s neck and closing his eyes. He could probably fall asleep like this. He _has_ fallen asleep like this before. 

Kihyun is putting the eggs on a plate when his phone goes off. “That’s her,” he says, and Hoseok grudgingly lets him go. Kihyun pecks Hoseok on the lips before going into their bedroom, his phone to his ear. When Hoseok is sure that he’s completely absorbed in the phone call, he goes over to their coffee table, pulling out one of the shelves in it. At the very back is a small box. Inside it, the ring that Hoseok had picked out months ago, when he had, for the first time, been completely sure that Kihyun was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. 

 

#

 

“I’m just saying, you’re better off proposing as soon as possible,” Hyungwon says, wrapped in a large blanket with an ice pack on his head. It is day four of the nine predicted days, and the hangover is showing no signs of disappearing. Hoseok supposes that it’s okay because at least Hyungwon doesn’t have work right now. It's spring break and Hyungwon is a math professor at a nearby university. 

“We can go ring shopping together,” Minhyuk yells from the kitchen, where he’s supposedly boiling water for tea, but there’s a great deal of noise for three cups of tea. Hyungwon winces every time the pots clanged together. 

“Oh,” Hoseok says. “I, uh, I already got the ring.” 

There’s a loud crash of metal from the kitchen as Minhyuk sprints out of the kitchen to a slightly guilty looking Hoseok and an extremely irritated looking Hyungwon. “You already got the ring? Without consulting us? The experts?” 

“If there were any experts at least one of them would be Hyunwoo,” Hyungwon grumbles. “He’s the one who’s married.” 

Minhyuk waves that away. “How could you get a ring without telling us? When did you even get it?” 

Hoseok leans forward, resting his face against his hands. “I got it last summer. I was shopping for my mom’s birthday present and I found the perfect one.” 

“Last summer,” Minhyuk repeats. “Last summer. You got the ring last summer.” 

Hoseok shifts uncomfortably. “I don’t have a picture of it because I didn’t want Kihyun to accidentally see it.” 

“You first talked to us about proposing to Kihyun in December,” Minhyuk says, and Hyungwon rearranges the ice pack on his head. “I remember because we were all drinking at that random bar downtown and when Kihyun went to get the next round you were like, hey guys guess what, I’m going to propose to Kihyun.” 

Hoseok winces. “Please do not talk to me about that night, that was not a very good night.” 

“You’re not the one who got the seven day long hangover,” Hyungwon mutters bitterly. Minhyuk goes back to the kitchen to get their tea, but he’s still grumbling when he walks back with their cups on a tray. 

“I would throw this in your face, but then you’d be like, my face is ruined forever, I’m never going to propose to Kihyun,” Minhyuk says, as Hoseok accepts his cup. 

“Good to know,” Hoseok says, taking a sip. Minhyuk may be a menace, but he does make the best tea. “Anyway, Kihyun wants to go out tonight.” 

“Go out as in go out to a club, or go out to dinner?” Minhyuk asks, as Hyungwon’s ice pack falls off his head. 

“It’s a Wednesday,” Hoseok says. “What do you think.” 

“Definitely the club,” Hyungwon says, giving up on his ice pack and sipping his tea. He makes a face when the liquid burns his mouth. 

“Wait, but what if he’s planning to propose tonight?” Minhyuk asks. “You already have the ring.” 

“Why do you think I’m here at this time?” Hoseok asks back, glancing at his watch. It’s almost six and he still needs to go wash up and change for dinner, not to mention feed the bunny. “What am I supposed to do?” 

“Um, just tell him some bullshit about how you think that it’s too soon for you to get married,” Hyungwon suggests, massaging his temple with the tips of his fingers. “And then when you propose to him, everything will be happy.” 

“That’s a terrible idea,” Minhyuk says. “What if Kihyun takes him too seriously and decides to leave him? I think Kihyun wants to settle down.” 

“Kihyun is 25,” Hoseok says. “Not really the settling down age.” 

“Almost 26,” Minhyuk corrects. Then he says, “Oh my god, I’m the same age as Kihyun. _I’m_ almost 26. Oh my god, I’m old.” 

“Calm down, I’ve been 26 for an entire two weeks now,” Hoseok says dryly, finishing off his tea and setting his cup down. “I’m going to head out, I’ll let you know how the dinner goes.” 

 

#

 

“You look nice,” Kihyun says, when Hoseok slides into the seat across from him. They’re in a relatively upscale restaurant, not somewhere they go often. 

“You do too,” Hoseok says, smiling slightly. “Did you drive here?” 

Kihyun shook his head. “I took the subway, so I’m still gross from work.” 

“I can’t even tell,” Hoseok says, as he puts his hand over Kihyun’s on the table. When the waiter comes over, Hoseok asks for water, because he’s driving and he wants to play it safe. Kihyun asks for white wine. 

“How was work?” Kihyun asks, when the waiter leaves. “I know you’ve been stressed about it for the past couple days.” 

“It was fine,” Hoseok says. “Deadlines coming up, I actually suck at coding, you know.” 

“You do not suck at coding,” Kihyun accuses. “Remember junior year of college—”

“— when you thought that taking the Intro to Java class would be a grade booster?” Hoseok finishes. “I did all of your homework and projects.” 

“I butchered those exams and I still got an A- in the class,” Kihyun says cheerfully. “The Hoseok Effect.” 

“Gross,” Hoseok says, but he doesn’t move his hand away from Kihyun’s. When the waiter brings their drinks, Hoseok merely puts his to the side; he’s not thirsty. But when he looks up, Kihyun is looking right him, his lips slightly parted. 

“What? Is there something on my face?” Hoseok rubs at his cheek with his free hand. Maybe there was a carrot leaf on his face again. Wouldn’t be the first time. 

Kihyun looks down at the table, and when Hoseok follows where he’s looking he sees that Kihyun is looking at his glass of wine. Because there’s a ring in it.

“Wait,” Hoseok says, trying not to panic. “Wait, there was a mix up. That’s not, that’s not mine.” 

Kihyun doesn’t say anything, but Hoseok realizes that his hand isn’t under Hoseok’s anymore. 

“That’s not,” Hoseok swallows, now in a state of full-on panic, “I’m not proposing to you. I’m just not, just. Why would I propose? Now? Not the right time, don’t you think?” Everything is going wrong. “Me? Propose?” 

“I’m so sorry sir, there’s been a mix up,” the waiter says, nervously, picking up the glass of wine. “My sincere apologies.” 

“I think that’s my cue to leave,” Kihyun says quietly, shrugging on his jacket. Hoseok makes to follow him, but he gets the feeling that Kihyun doesn’t want company. 

 

#

 

“You were supposed to follow him,” Minhyuk yells, his voice slightly staticky over the bad connection, as Hoseok hits his head repeatedly on his steering wheel. “This is Boyfriend 101, you did not date Yoo Kihyun for seven years to lose him like this!” 

“Help me,” Hoseok whispers, and Minhyuk sighs. 

“Okay, repeat to me exactly what you said,” Minhyuk says. He’s probably writing his all down. 

“Okay, so I ordered water, because I was driving, and Kihyun ordered some wine. Then we just talked about things—”

“What kind of things?” Minhyuk interrupts. 

“Just things, I don’t know. We talked about Kihyun’s Java class in junior year. Before that we talked about work, I think.” 

“Okay, fine. Continue.” 

“Then the waiter brought our drinks, and I just put mine to the side because I wasn’t thirsty,” Hoseok says, ignoring Minhyuk’s muttered, _lies_. “Then I realized that Kihyun was staring at me and I was like, what? And he just stared at his glass and then I looked and realized that there was a ring in it.” 

“Was it a nice ring?” 

“No, it was ugly as fuck, nothing on the ring I got for Kihyun.” 

“Nice,” Minhyuk says. “Continue.”

“Then, uh, I said some stupid stuff.” Hoseok hits his head against the steering wheel again. “Oh my god, I’m so stupid.” 

“What stupid stuff exactly?” Minhyuk presses. “I need all the details to help you devise a plan. Wait, no. To devise a plan. You’re going to sit there and cry while I do all the work, as usual.” 

“Will you pity me for a second,” Hoseok whines. 

“Tell me what you said,” Minhyuk says again. Hoseok can hear him tapping his pen against the table. That habit used to drive Hoseok crazy when they studied together, all those years ago. 

“I said, that’s not mine. I’m not proposing to you. Me? Propose? Not the right time for that, don’t you think? Or something like that.” 

“Wait,” Minhyuk says. “You said, it’s not the right time for that? That’s what you said? Out of all the words in this language, those are the ones you chose to string together?” 

“Help,” Hoseok says again. “Please?” 

“You’re literally hopeless,” Minhyuk says, but Hoseok can hear his pen scratching on his paper. “Take your lunch break with me tomorrow, at that shitty deli that we both hate.” 

“I’ve been working through my lunch breaks,” Hoseok says. “I have a deadline to meet.” 

“This is Kihyun we’re talking about here,” Minhyuk says. “You know, Kihyun who you’ve been dating for seven years, Kihyun who you want to propose to, Kihyun who is the love of your life, that Kihyun.” 

“Lunch break tomorrow,” Hoseok mutters, before hanging up. When he gets back to his and Kihyun’s apartment, it’s empty, all of the lights off. Kihyun’s car isn’t in the parking lot. Hoseok takes the bunny out of her cage and plays with her absentmindedly for an hour before putting her back. He stays up until half past one, but Kihyun doesn’t come home. 

 

#

 

“You look like death,” Minhyuk says, setting his phone down on the table as Hoseok starts awake. He’s been dozing all day. Kihyun had been in the kitchen when Hoseok first woke up, but had left before Hoseok finished getting dressed. Kihyun’s always been one to leave for work early. Nurses need time to prepare for their shifts. 

“That’s what I feel like,” Hoseok says, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hands. Minhyuk sets down a big tray of fries in front of him. 

“Brain food,” Minhyuk explains. “Eat up.” 

“I hate this deli’s food. You hate this deli’s food. Why are we here?” 

Minhyuk shrugs. “Maybe we’ll spend more time talking than eating if we hate the food? I don’t know. Either way, I have devised a simple, clean, 15-step plan to fixing your problem.” 

“15 steps,” Hoseok repeats. “I can’t do 15 steps. I can’t even cook pasta.” 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be with you every step of the way.” 

“You were with me when I was trying to cook that pasta too,” Hoseok reminds him. Minhyuk pointedly ignores him and scrolls through his phone. 

“Anyway, the first step is to talk to him,” Minhyuk says. “Communication is very important in a relationship!” 

“You broke up with your last girlfriend because you said that you didn’t feel like talking to her.” 

Minhyuk waves his hands. “She is so irrelevant, can we please focus on what’s important?” 

“Okay fine,” Hoseok says. “I’m going to go home today, feed the bunny, and Kihyun’s probably going to be late, so I’ll order food and have it all ready for him when he’s home. Then we’ll talk.” 

“Did you read my notes,” Minhyuk asks suspiciously. 

“Minhyuk, I’ve been in a relationship for the last seven years, I’m not completely incapable.” 

“Yeah, whatever you need to tell yourself so you can sleep at night,” Minhyuk says, picking at the fries. They’re crispy and burnt, totally unappetizing. Hoseok will probably eat his sandwich in between lines of code, as usual. Minhyuk leaves first to get back to the veterinary clinic, because grad students in vet school can’t afford to be even the tiniest bit unprepared. Hoseok dumps the rest of the fries in the trash before going outside to wait for the crosswalk to give him the go sign. 

 

#

 

“Hi,” Kihyun says, when Hoseok opens the door, stumbling slightly over his winter boots. Hoseok really should clean his shoes up, it’s getting out of hand. 

“Hi,” Hoseok says nervously. “You’re home early.” 

“Relatively easy day,” Kihyun says, coming over to take Hoseok’s thin jacket and hanging it on the coat rack. He puts an arm around Hoseok, his head against Hoseok’s shoulder. 

“What time did you get back last night?” Hoseok asks, once they’ve sat down. They always sit next to each other at their round table when they eat dinner at home. Kihyun picks at his food before fidgeting with his glass of water. 

“Around two,” he says. “You were sleeping all funny. You weren’t under the covers.” 

“Oh,” Hoseok says. “I forgot.” 

“I tried to pull them out from under you, but you were really stubborn,” Kihyun says, managing a smile. “You held on to the edge of the blanket and wouldn’t let go.” 

“Yeah, that sounds like me,” Hoseok admits. When he was younger, he would hate sleeping under blankets to the point that he would catch colds in the late spring. His mother could never get him to sleep under the blanket once he decided that he didn’t like it. In the winter he would grudgingly allow a thin sheet to be draped over him, but that was it.

“I went for a drive,” Kihyun says cautiously. “And I thought about what you said. About it not being time for, you know.” 

“Oh?” Hoseok has a feeling that this is going to end very badly. 

“I love you,” Kihyun says. “And I want to be with you. If you don’t think it’s time for us to move forward in our relationship, that’s fine. As long as you—” His voice breaks, and he clears his throat. “As long as you’re happy. That’s what, that’s what I decided.” 

Hoseok opens his mouth and closes it again. He doesn’t keep his mouth open for extended periods of time anymore after the time Minhyuk took advantage of it with a jar of honey and frozen fish. It was not a good time. “What do you think it’s time for?” he asks. 

“I think it’s a good idea to take our time,” Kihyun says, continuing to pick at his food. There had been vegetable stir-fry, but now Kihyun’s plate is speckled with tiny shreds of color. “If you don’t think we’re ready, then we must not be ready. I overreacted last night, I’m sorry.” 

“I think I overreacted more,” Hoseok says, and Kihyun looks up at him and offers a smile. Hoseok doesn’t hesitate before leaning over and kissing him, not resisting when Kihyun angles his body so that Hoseok can press the palm of his hand against Kihyun’s back, pushing him closer. 

 

#

 

“He doesn’t want to get married?” Hyungwon asks, scandalized, his the volume of his voice soft over the phone. He’s miraculously recovered from his hangover, even though Hoseok thinks quietly to himself that he still winces at loud noises. “Are you sure?” 

“Well, at first I thought he was just saying that because he thought that I didn’t want to get married, but now I’m not sure. I can’t really remember.” Hoseok glances around him to make sure that no one else is in the break room. 

“What do you mean, you can’t really remember?” 

“Well after we made up we were going to eat dinner but then things didn’t really—”

“Stop,” Hyungwon says, “stop. I’m not here to listen to your schoolboy stories about fucking your boyfriend. I don’t get paid enough for this.” 

“Hyungwon, I’m not paying you to be my friend.” 

Hyungwon sniffs. “Your parents kept the secret from you well.” 

“Shut up,” Hoseok says, crumpling up his sandwich bag and throwing it at the wastebin. He makes it, for once. “Anyway, what do I do?” 

“I don’t know, do I look married to you?” There’s a distant knock in the background, and Hyungwon says, “Okay, I have to go. I have office hours right now.” He hangs up without saying goodbye, but Hoseok is used to his abrupt way of ending conversations. He dials Minhyuk’s cell, but no one picks up. Minhyuk is probably in class or at the clinic now, he can’t pick up calls during most hours. 

“It’s just you and me, buddy,” Hoseok says to his coffee mug, and doesn’t bother looking around to see if anyone was near enough to hear him. 

 

#

 

Kihyun comes home late three days in a row, but Hoseok always waits to eat dinner with him, no matter how late. Kihyun wakes him up once, and when Hoseok groggily opens his eyes, Kihyun’s still in his scrubs with his stethoscope around his neck. 

“What time is it?” Hoseok asks, rubbing his eyes. He had dozed off with the lights still on and now they’re blindingly bright. 

“Almost eight thirty,” Kihyun says quietly. “If you sleep more, you won’t be able to sleep tonight.” 

“Thank you,” Hoseok says, and Kihyun lets him hold his hand. “Did you have dinner?” 

“It was one of my co-workers’ birthday,” Kihyun says, trying to smile. “We threw her a little party. Sorry I was so late.” 

“No, don’t worry about it,” Hoseok says, hoping his own smile doesn’t look as obviously forced as Kihyun’s. 

“I’ll heat something up for you,” Kihyun says, taking the stethoscope off his neck and putting it on the coffee table. “If you don’t mind, I’m probably going to sleep after that. It’s been such a long day.” 

“Don’t worry about me,” Hoseok says, pulling Kihyun in a little closer to kiss his forehead. “Just go to sleep. You look really tired.” Kihyun does, and Hoseok feels strangely that he shouldn’t join him in bed.

 

#

 

“How are you and Kihyun?” Hyungwon asks, when Hoseok stops by their apartment to drop off random articles of Hyungwon and Minhyuk’s clothing that had been in his laundry. Everything is washed and folded. Hoseok wonders why his friends don’t consider him an angel.

“Oh, you know,” Hoseok says. “Could be doing worse. He could entirely be ignoring me as opposed to mostly be ignoring me.” 

Hyungwon pauses, then says, “I think he’s having a really hard time right now. Kihyun, I mean.” 

“Did he say something to you?” Hoseok almost trips over his feet in his haste to get to where Hyungwon is in the kitchen. 

“I texted him this morning and all he send back were sad emojis,” Hyungwon says. “So I replied asking what was wrong and I didn’t get a reply.” 

“I wish I could just tell him that I didn’t mean those things,” Hoseok says, leaning against the counter. “Why is this so hard?” 

“Why can’t you just tell him? Just propose. Just do it.” Hyungwon opens the pot of soup and stirs. Hoseok catches a whiff of it and wonders how Minhyuk is still alive. 

“I don’t know. I just want it to be perfect, you know?” Hoseok leans so far back on the counter that he hits his head on the overhead cabinet. His day is going fantastic. “I still don’t know how to propose.” 

Hyungwon shifts his apron and puts down his big spoon that he was using to stir. “I don’t understand why it’s so hard for you. I mean, obviously you two want to be together. Just tell him that, and then do the whole getting down on one knee thing. What more could Kihyun want? All he wants is you.” 

“Well, maybe he should have picked someone who isn’t so bad at all of these things,” Hoseok says, and he knows that he’s disappointing Hyungwon, disappointing probably everyone who knows him, honestly. But he can’t figure out why it’s so hard, all of a sudden, to tell Kihyun that he loves him. 

 

#

 

Hoseok wakes up at four in the morning the next Saturday morning by a pounding on the door. When he finally pulls himself together to put on a bathrobe and open the front door, he’s immediately greeting with a faceful of rain-soaked Minhyuk, who clearly hadn’t gone to bed yet. 

“Um,” Hoseok says. “If no one is dying or dead, please get out.” 

“Where’s Kihyun?” Minhyuk asks instead, shaking the water out of his hair and succeeding in getting Hoseok’s face wet. 

“In bed,” Hoseok says. “Wait, he wasn’t in bed. He wasn’t in bed. Where’s Kihyun?” 

“I was out with some people in my classes and when I checked my phone I had like ten missed calls from him,” Minhyuk says, shivering slightly. Hoseok throws him a blanket from the couch. “I tried to call him back, but he didn’t pick up. Hyungwon’s sleeping, but I went back to our place and he’s not there, either.”

“Oh my god,” Hoseok says. “Oh my god.” 

“What time did you guys go to bed?” Minhyuk asks, pushing his hair out of his face. It sticks up in all different directions. 

“We just had a glass of wine after dinner and watched a movie,” Hoseok says. “And then it was like ten and we were both tired so we went to bed.” 

“That gives us like a six hour timeframe in which he could have left,” Minhyuk says. “A six hour time frame. Six hour—” 

“Okay, I got it the first time,” Hoseok says harshly, and then sighs. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. I just, I don’t know where he is. Everything was going fine.” 

“Was it?” 

“Okay, fine, things have been a little distant between us since the restaurant fiasco, but I didn’t think that they were going badly. Just a little, you know, strained.” Hoseok fidgets with the sleeve of his bathrobe and realizes belatedly that he’s actually wearing Kihyun’s. His own is probably in the laundry basket, now that he thinks about it. 

“Call him,” Minhyuk says, sitting on the couch and pulling his knees up to his chest. “Just call him.” 

Hoseok does, but no one picks up the first four times. Hoseok leaves a voicemail each time. The fifth time, there’s a crackle of connection, and then a dial tone. 

“He picked up, but then hung up right away,” Hoseok says hollowly, almost laughing at this situation. “What do I do?” 

“Why did you have to go and say such a dumb thing,” Minhyuk groans, flopping over to lay on the couch, stomach down. “My perfect, foolproof, 15-step plan can’t fix this.” 

“Thanks,” Hoseok says, nudging him over so he can sit down. “Thanks a lot.” 

“I’m sorry,” Minhyuk says quietly. “I’m being mean.” 

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” Hoseok says, trying to inject cheerfulness into his tone. It doesn’t work.

“I’ll keep my phone on,” Minhyuk promises, as he’s leaving half an hour later. “Hyungwon too. We’ll let you know the second he contacts one of us. Do the same for us, okay?” 

“Yeah,” Hoseok says. “Yeah, sounds good.” Once Minhyuk is gone, he goes over to the coffee table, taking out the ring. It’s so tiny, so perfect. Hoseok can’t believe it’s real. Can’t believe this is all real. 

Minhyuk wakes Hoseok up at around seven with a phone call, telling him that Kihyun was visiting his parents for a couple days. 

“When did he call you?” Hoseok asks, almost dropping the ring. He had accidentally fallen asleep with it still in his hand. He puts it back in the box and tucks the box away. 

“Literally five minutes ago,” Minhyuk says. “I hung up and immediately dialed your number.”

“Does he sound okay?” Hoseok asks, trying not to sound too desperate. “Should I call him?” 

“He said, uh, he wanted some space,” Minhyuk mutters. Hoseok almost doesn’t understand him. “I’d leave him alone until he’s ready to talk to you again.” 

“Why didn’t he just tell me that he wanted to move forward?” Hoseok whines, trying not to spill coffee beans everywhere. Kihyun is so much better at this. 

“Because he thought you didn’t want to, dumbass,” Minhyuk says. “When he’s ready to talk to you again, just tell him straight up, I’m in love with you and want to marry you and spend the rest of my life with you. Then get down on one knee and propose the hell out of that ring. That is the new plan.” 

“Got it,” Hoseok says, and hangs up, narrowly succeeding in not spilling the beans. He cuts his finger on a stray knife in the sink later, and spends fifteen minutes looking for a band-aid before remembering that Kihyun moved the first aid kit to the shelf below the sink, because he couldn’t reach the cupboard above the refrigerator. 

 

#

 

Kihyun drops off a lunch at Hoseok’s office a couple days later. The receptionist delivers it to him, sporting her usual slight frown. 

“What the person who dropped this off look like?” Hoseok asks, wanting to make sure that it had been Kihyun. “Was he kind of short, dark brown hair, silver bracelet, stud earrings?” 

“He was kind of short,” she tells him. “I don’t really remember anything else.” 

“Okay,” Hoseok says. “Thanks.” 

“Who’s it from?” Hyunwoo asks, later when they’re taking their lunch break together. It’s been weeks, it feels like, since they took a lunch break together. 

“Kihyun,” Hoseok says, opening the bag and seeing that there is just a sandwich and some fruit, but it always tastes better when Kihyun packs it for him. “We’re kind of going through a rough patch right now, if you haven’t heard yet from Minhyuk.” 

“You guys have been together for so long,” Hyunwoo says, stirring sugar into his coffee. “Aren’t you thinking about proposing?” 

“I already have the ring,” Hoseok admits. “There was a little fiasco when we went out to dinner last week and basically now he thinks that I don’t think it’s the right time to get married. And I’m pretty sure he does.” 

“Why don’t you just tell him?” Hyunwoo asks, tossing an apple between his hands. “When I proposed to Hyojung, I swear I was sweating buckets. But she said yes. And looking back, it was just the easiest thing in the world, you know? Like, of course I asked. Of course she said yes. We want to be together. Simple as that.” 

“I feel like I messed everything up,” Hoseok confesses, spearing his grapes with his fork. “What if he decides that he doesn’t want to talk to me anymore?” 

“Um, he packed you lunch,” Hyunwoo says, finally taking a bite out of his apple. “I’d say that’s a positive sign.” 

“He usually leaves notes, though,” Hoseok says. He looks into his bag again. “Wait, there is a note, never mind.” 

“See?” Hyunwoo says. “Everything is working out.” 

Hoseok reads the note and almost drops it in his haste in standing up. “Can you cover for me for the rest of the day? I know the deadline is tomorrow but I submitted everything yesterday, and I double checked everything this morning.” 

“Of course,” Hyunwoo says. “Come back with good news, okay?” 

“Yeah,” Hoseok says. “I’ll try.” 

 

#

 

Hoseok dials Minhyuk’s number as soon as he turns on his car engine, but he doesn’t pick up. Hoseok keeps forgetting that Minhyuk is actually a very busy person disguised as a lazy twenty-something. Hyungwon doesn’t pick up either, and Hoseok is just glad that he doesn’t get pulled over for speeding on his way home. 

The front door is locked, and Hoseok fumbles with his keys for a full minute and a half before finally fitting the right one in the keyhole. Kihyun’s note had only said, _I love you, I’m sorry_ , and Kihyun would never write a note like that. Kihyun only writes notes consisting of things Hoseok said that Kihyun thought was cute. 

When he opens the door, he’s momentarily frozen, because Kihyun’s sitting on the couch, hand outstretched. On his ring finger is the ring, the perfect ring that Hoseok saw all those months ago through a glass pane. He hadn’t hesitated before walking in and asking about it, and could only think about what it would look like on Kihyun’s hand. And there it is. 

“What?” Hoseok says, when he recovers the use of his voice. “But your note? I don’t understand?” 

“It looks nice, doesn’t it?” Kihyun says. “But I’ll take it off for now. Let you propose for real.” 

“Who said I’m going to propose?” Hoseok says, somewhat regaining his composure. “Who said that the ring was for you?” 

“Oh no one,” Kihyun says, taking the ring off and putting it back in the box. He hands the box to Hoseok, who takes it numbly. “Just a little bird.” 

“Okay,” Hoseok says, letting out the breath that he hadn’t realized he had been holding. “Okay, I’m going to do the thing.” 

“The thing,” Kihyun repeats, as Hoseok sits down on the couch next to Kihyun. “Okay, do the thing.” 

Hoseok takes another deep breath. “So. We, uh, we met a long time ago. Yeah, time flies, doesn’t it? I never told you this, but um, when you first came with Minhyuk to study in the library, I looked at you and thought to myself, one day I’m going to marry that guy. I’m going to put a ring on his finger and never let anyone else ever even look in his direction.” 

“Is that for real?” 

“Yeah.” Hoseok says nervously. “Yeah, it is. I thought you were cute and I pestered Minhyuk about you until he finally got annoyed enough and gave me your phone number. And when you finally gave it to yourself, I had to delete your contact and create it again because I didn’t want you to know.” 

“Really?” Kihyun asks, voice soft. “Why didn’t you ever text me before that?” 

“I didn’t want you to think I was coming on too strong,” Hoseok mumbles. Kihyun’s hand is resting on his knee. “I wanted to look, you know, suave.” 

“Suave,” Kihyun repeats. “And here I am, dating the most suave guy on earth.” 

Hoseok laughs, and that relaxes his shoulders slightly. “The first time I thought that you might be the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, it was the end of junior year, when you were talking on the phone with your mom. I’d seen you talk on the phone with your mom before, but I don’t know. I just looked at you and thought you were so perfect. And you were mine.” 

“You’re going to make me cry,” Kihyun says, and Hoseok realizes that he’s kind of tearing up a bit too. “Stop talking.” 

“After I’ve said all this?” Hoseok asks. “Remember spring break senior year when you, me, Hyungwon, and Minhyuk went on that ski trip? And I was too scared to go on the harder slopes so you helped me down an entire one?” 

“You said that the snow was blinding you and you didn’t want to cause casualties,” Kihyun reminds him. 

“The snow was blinding me,” Hoseok says. “It was very bright.” 

“Of course,” Kihyun says, putting a hand over his eyes because he doesn’t want to see Hoseok see him cry, he never wants Hoseok to see him cry. Not when he had gotten his first choice job at the hospital. Not when his father had been hospitalized a couple years back for a heart attack. Not when their first pet, a tiny hamster, somehow got out and ran away; they found it a couple days later on the sidewalk near their apartment complex, probably run over by a bike. 

“I never thought I’d be so lucky to find someone like you,” Hoseok says slowly. “I love you. I want to spread the rest of my life with you. Up until now, I thought it was important where and when and how I proposed, but none of that matters. The only one who matters is you.” He gets down on one knee, and he can’t believe that this is happening. He holds up the ring box, opening it. “Will you marry me?” 

“Yes,” Kihyun says. “Yes. Oh my god. I can’t believe this is happening.” He’s crying now, for real, and Hoseok reaches over and wipes his tears away. He slips the ring on Kihyun’s finger, and kisses the top of Kihyun’s head. He’s probably crying himself, but he pretends not to notice the tears on his own face. 

“I got you something,” Kihyun says between sniffles, reaching for the other shelf of the coffee table. “I can’t believe you hid yours in one shelf, and me in the other. And never found each other’s.” 

“Wait,” Hoseok says. “You hid a ring in the other shelf? But the unspoken rule was that I was going to be the one to propose.” 

“I still got it for you,” Kihyun says. “I saw it last summer and I thought it was perfect.” 

“I picked this out last summer too,” Hoseok says, as Kihyun slides the ring onto Hoseok’s finger. “I saw it, and I saw you wearing it.” 

“I know,” Kihyun says. “I know what you mean.” 

“Can we come out now?” someone yells from the bedroom, and Hoseok knows in a second that it’s Minhyuk. 

“Wait, what is he doing here?” Hoseok asks. “Why is he?” 

“We filmed the whole thing,” Hyungwon announces cheerfully, coming out of the bedroom. “The camera’s on the television shelf.” Hoseok looks, and there is a camera there. He really needs to start paying attention to his surroundings. 

“But why are you two here?” Hoseok asks, thoroughly confused. 

“When Kihyun left the restaurant after the fiasco, he called and told us what happened really quick, so we strategized and decided to pull a prank on you,” Minhyuk says cheerfully. 

“Wait, but how did you know that I didn’t mean what I said?” Hoseok asks Kihyun. 

“I dated you for seven years and you think I don’t know when you say something you don’t mean? You’re kidding, right?” 

“Oh,” Hoseok says. “Then what was the note about? The lunch note.” 

“What did the note say?” Hyungwon asks, helping himself to cookies. Hoseok doesn’t know how long those have been sitting there on the coffee table, but decides that now is not a good time to bring it up. 

“It said, I love you, I’m sorry,” Kihyun says. “I love you, I’m sorry about pulling this prank on you but I don’t regret it at all, honestly.” He high fives Minhyuk and Hyungwon, and Hoseok would be mad, but he can’t bring himself to be. Instead, he wraps his arms around Kihyun from the back and rests his cheek against Kihyun’s shoulder. 

“I should probably stop the recording now,” Minhyuk says, and Hoseok had totally forgotten about the camera too. “It’s caught everything, don’t you think?” 

“I can’t believe all of you,” Hoseok says. “So mean. What did I ever do?” 

“Well,” Hyungwon says. “There was that one time sophomore year when you —”

“No, I don’t want to hear embarrassing college stories,” Hoseok protests. “I’m 26, I’m too old for this.” 

“Not too old for me,” Kihyun says.

“Perfect for you,” Hoseok says, and even though Minhyuk fixes them both with a disgusted look, it looks almost endearing on him. 

“I was thinking we should get a dog next,” Kihyun says. “Maybe after the wedding.” 

“After the wedding,” Hoseok says, because of course there’s going to be a wedding. They’re going to have a wedding with flowers and suits and music and food, and it’s going to be perfect. “I can’t wait.” 

 

#


End file.
